o get her into training, a physical trainer. >>no, i'm not doing that. >>because i think that would be awesome to work out, get that adrenaline going and she don't want to try it. but, i know she'd be good at it. >>mom, i smoke and i do drugs and i don't exercise. >>you gotta start somewhere. (vo)after relapsing rebecca was kicked out of yet another treatment program. rebecca's mom, nancy, allowed her daughter to move back home on one condition- that she stay clean and submit to random drug tests. >>what is your plan? >>nothing. i don't know. i can't really make promises 'cause i'm not gonna keep promises, but like, obviously i don't want too end up back on the streets. i don't want to want to be homeless. i don't want to be a loser but like, i can't promise that's gonna not happen.

(vo)a few weeks later rebecca left home and didn't return. when we last spoke to her she was in a motel room with her boyfriend, using once again. >>you know, like you're not doing good. and you know that you're gonna eventually die. there's no such thing as an old heroin addict. they're all young 'cause they all end up dying eventually i guess.

[♪ theme music ♪] >> bill: good morning, everybody. what do you say? it is thursday, march 21st great to see you today. this is the "full court press" coming to you live on current tv of course, and it's good to have you with us this morning. we look forward to hearing from

you, not just that we'll tell you what is going on bring you up to date on all of the news around the world, but look forward to hearing your take on our news of the day at 866-55-press or on twitter @bpshow, or on facebook at facebook/billpressshow. president obama his visit to the middle east, he has already toured the dead sea scrolls. he is now off at the palestinian authority, meeting with their president and later this afternoon he will address an audience of young israelis back in jerusalem. meanwhile back here at our nation's capitol, senator dianne feinstein is hopping mad about harry reid's refusal to have a

vote on the assault weapon's ban. she says she is not going to just roll over and play dead on this issue. and former chair michael steele calls reince priebus numb nuts. oh, man. lots to talk about this morning on current tv. billy zane stars in barabbas. coming in march to reelz. to find reelz in your area, go to reelz.com

can become major victories. i'm phil mickelson, pro golfer. when i was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis my rheumatologist prescribed enbrel for my pain and stiffness, and to help stop joint damage. [ male announcer ] enbrel may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal events including infections tuberculosis lymphoma, other cancers, nervous system and blood disorders, and allergic reactions have occurred. before starting enbrel your doctor should test you for tuberculosis and discuss whether you've been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. you should not start enbrel if you have an infection like the flu. tell your doctor if you're prone to infections, have cuts or sores have had hepatitis b have been treated for heart failure, or if you have symptoms such

as persistent fever bruising, bleeding or paleness. since enbrel helped relieve my joint pain, it's the little things that mean the most. ask your rheumatologist if enbrel is right for you. [ doctor ] enbrel, the number one biologic medicine prescribed by rheumatologists.

you know who is coming on to me now? you know the kind of guys that do reverse mortgage commercials? those types are coming on to me all the time now. (vo) she gets the comedians laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in

the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. you would rather deal with ahmadinejad than me. >>absolutely. >> and so would mitt romney. (vo) she's joy behar. >>and the best part is that current will let me say anything. what the hell were they thinking? ♪ >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio, and on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: senator dianne feinstein says harry reid broke his word. nothing. nothing, nothing worse than the united states congress than for a member of congress to break his or her word. there are strong words coming from the senior senator from

california. good morning, everybody. hello. hello. hello. it is great to see you today. it is thursday march 21st. this is the "full court press," welcome to the program this morning, and thank you for being a part of the program. you are a part of the program every morning. it's not just us talking to you, it's not just us telling you what is going on. we have a conversation here. we'll let you know what is happening, and you tell us what it all means to you. 866-55-press is our toll free number, that's how you walk in the door. 866-557-7377. or you are fly in over the tran -- transum on twitter. and is the chat room still going? dollment right. as long as there is a current

tv there will be a chat room. join it. you are in and part of team press lead here in the studio of course, by peter ogburn and dan henning. >> hey hey, hey. >> phil becker on the phones and siprion bolling on the video. good morning. good morning. yesterday at the gym workingout, pulling my weights, and this guy had been on the machine, and i thought he left and i sat down, and i noticed his towel was there. and i said oh i'm sorry. and he said, no no no. i just left my towel. and he said i got to tell you, i watch your show every morning. and i thought that's nice. got to be careful, man where you go. and then as i finished he said,

you know, back in the days when he was just a united states senator and not running for president yet, he said barack obama used to workout at this gym, and he says and i saw him right on that machine, and he says man, you were working out on barack obama's machine. >> very nice. >> bill: yeah how are -- how about that. i know where he used to live which is maybe four or five blocks away from this gym, but i don't know why he wasn't at the senate gym but maybe he belonged to both. speaking of sports by the way, we filled out our brackets and we'll tell you later who we all

picked as the final four and the big winners. president obama picked his yesterday. and the big news is that kentucky, the defending champs did not even make it to the tournament. a lot of people are pissed off about that including chester, who is a regular caller to sports radio in kentucky. >> yeah, basketball to university of kentucky fans is a religion. they expect to be in the tournament every single year. >> bill: and i would argue that they should be in this year because they won last year. >> okay. all right. because they won last year. okay. fine. never mind the fact that they went out in the first round of the nit. >> bill: who were -- >> some guy named robert morris. >> bill: okay.

chester is not happy and he claims that on -- >> and i think it's a disgrace and a joke that the ncaa didn't put us in the tournament if you ask me it's a bunch of liberal socialism -- [ laughter ] >> and your party's partially responsible for it. >> your party? he's blaming me? >> bill: liberal socialism, man. blame it on bernie sanders. >> yeah, right. >> bill: all right. hey great lineup for you today, as always reporters from "the daily beast" and "politico," is going to be here in studio to talk about the president's trip to the middle east and speak with judy chu from southern california, but first -- >> announcer: this is the "full

court press" press. >> overhead lions making news. it looked like the miami heat 23-game win streak was going to end last night as they were down by 27 points in the third quarter. but former cavalier lebron jam was not going to have that. they went on to beat cleveland. that is nine games away from the record holder. >> lebron james is amazing. >> but you still don't like him? >> i admire the fact that he was the greatest player of this generation, but i don't love lebron james. let me point out by the way, the heat play the spurs at home march 31st let me just say that

right now. you'll see the win streak end right there. >> bill: think so? we'll remember that. >> president obama had some car trouble on thursday. one of the presidential limos nicknamed the beast broke down and had to be towed away by a flat dead truck. >> bill: i know what the problem was -- the car didn't break down -- the dumb-ass driver put gasoline -- regular gas in a diesel car. >> they said they plan extensively for failures like this on trips, that's why they always have extra vehicles and a mechanic with them all the time. >> bill: again this dumb-ass driver -- hello?

they don't go to the stand where all of the illegal immigrants stand looking for a job and -- >> yeah, can you drive? >> obama: right. >> and who wants to be a millionaire has announced a new host. it's now in its 14th season it is a far cry from what it was when regis philbin started the show. wheel of fortune gets 11 million viewers, jeopardy 9 million, and family feud, 6.5 million viewers. >> that's amazing. i can't remember the last time i watched who wants to be a millionaire. >> bill: all right. this morning to start off we go

to your local cvs, oh yeah was there yesterday. got 1 right across the street from our studio here. but they are getting a little flax these days because of a new policy that they have come up with. they are not the only company doing it by the way, but cvs has a new policy that they are going to penalize their employers who don't do what they should be doing to stay healthy or to get healthy. and we'll tell you how it works. so cvs says they want everybody to -- to take part in an annual wellness review. a health assessment basically you know, a checkup, okay? and as part of the checkup you would find out, and the doctors or nurse whatever how much you weigh, your weight and your

body fat, and that information would be turned over to their ininsurer, and then if you -- they'll insure you based on how healthy you are, right? but here is the sticking point. if you refuse to take part in the wellness review or if you refuse to let that information go to their insurance provider then they will fine you. by the way they pay for the review. they'll fine you $600 a year. so you work for cvs, you have health insurance, but you have to pay if you won't let them know your weight and your body fat, you have to pay an extra $600 a year some employees are very upset about this and the head of a group called the patient privacy advocates group said this is not fair to employees. >> the approach they are taking

is based on the assumption that somehow these people need a whip. they need to be penalized to make themselves healthy. when it could be as simple as not having a doctor. >> bill: but they provide the wellness review and doctors and i'm sure they give you time to get it done and they pay for it. >> this is technology enhanced discrimination on steroids. >> bill: these companies are discriminating against their employees by fining them if they don't comply if they don't go along with the wellness program or the fitness program of this particular company. do you think that's fair?

866-55-press. should a company have the right to incentvise or disincentivize it's a employees from staying healthy. my own experience with this goes back to when i was hired by cnn. and this was long before obamacare, this was in 1996 and i was told flat out when i had to fill out my application that if i smoked i didn't qualify for a job at cnn. ted turner put that out there, if you are a smoker you don't work here at cnn. why? because he didn't want to pay for the lung cancer and have everybody's premiums be so much higher because of smokers. i'm sure at the time he was challenged by it but it's a

policy that stuck. and i saw there's a group called the national business group on health represents -- these are large employers, but they found in 2011, big companies -- 80% of big companies provide some kind of health assessment for their employees, and of those -- of that 80%, three-quarterers of them offer incentives meaning lower rates if you don't smoke, don't drink, keep your weight down or whatever and -- or disincentives if you do. so i got to tell you, i don't have a problem it with. i think cvs is doing the right thing. >> yeah, i agree with you, especially these days when they show that being out of weight and out of shape is as harmful as smoking in a lot of cases. it is killing us as a society to

be obese. >> bill: yeah so the question is, is it any business of your employer how much -- we're talking here particularly about how much you weigh or that you are keeping yourself healthy, and should companies, should employers have the right to penalize you if you don't stay in shape? by the way with obamacare, obamacare allows companies -- there's an actual provision -- so we're going to be seeing more and more of this. obamacare allows employers to levy a hire penalty against workers who don't participate in company wellness programs. so what these companies are saying, with the blessing of obamacare is you get healthy or else. you keep your weight down or else, and in the case of cvs, or else is $600 a year. that's a lot of money.

>> yeah sure. >> bill: cvs doing the right thing? it is any business of your employer whether or not you are staying fit or keeping fit. 866-55-press, let us know what you think about it. i'm okay with this program. >> announcer: radio meets television, the "bill press show," now on current tv. for true stories. with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines. real, gripping, current. documentaries... on current tv.

[ male announcer ] it's red lobster's lobsterfest our largest selection of lobster entrees like lobster lover's dream or new grilled lobster and lobster tacos. come in now and sea food differently. visit redlobster.com now for an exclusive $10 coupon on two lobsterfest entrees.

this show is about analyzing criticizing, and holding policy to the fire. are you encouraged by what you

heard the president say the other night? is this personal or is it political? a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. staying in tough with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for the middle class. but we do care about them, right? vo: the war room tonight at 6 eastern ♪ >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: all right. twenty-five minutes after the hour now by the way, the dow hitting another record high yesterday. so at least one aspect of the

economy booming. i wish that was felt throughout and i wish the companies would use all of that money they are making and profits that are piling up to hire more people. that's what has got to happen for the economy to really boom again. cvs a major drug chain in maybe one-half of the country, but they are big, and they are telling employers, you have to see how you are doing at least once a year. we'll pay for it. and that information goes to our insurance company. and if you refuse to let us know your weight and body fat, peter what was the world think of this. >> on twitter jaws says i'm a black woman, 5'4", 165, according to those charts i'm

obese. ruth says if a company can enact health poll says what is to stop them from enacting other policies that impose on private freedoms. and then i am opposed to this. >> bill: well, then get the help you need. there are programs that can help people. but you got to admit you got the problem first, right? >> exactly. >> bill: but again cvs is not the only company doing this. in detroit michigan. good morning. >> caller: good morning. yeah, i'm in favor of the program that companies can check their employees health you know? >> caller: tim hold on just a

second, turn your radio down. okay. >> caller: oh, i got the tv on. i'm watching bill right now. >> bill: good for you. >> caller: yeah, but i'm in favor for it, because they are paying for the health care, they deserve to have healthy employees. >> caller: well, it seems to me -- everybody gets lower insurance premiums right? if the work force is staying healthy? >> caller: exactly that's what obama is on this line for, because he wants our nation to stay healthy. and the healthier we stay the lower the premiums are going to go. >> bill: absolutely. and that's why i think it's different in response to that one other comment, the companies have an interest in this and you as an employee should have an interest in this because of

lower premiums. everybody benefits. i think it's a win-win, but some people say it's discrimination. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." criticizing, and holding policy to the fire. are you encouraged by what you heard the president say the other night? is this personal or is it political? a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. staying in tough with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for the middle class. but we do care about them, right? vo: the war room tonight at 6 eastern

u ♪ >> announcer: chatting with you live at current.com/billpress, this is the "bill press show," live on your radio, and current tv. >> bill: here we go 33 minutes after the hour. thursday march 21st president obama on the second day of his visit to the middle east. he is now visiting with the leadership of the palestinian authority, back to jerusalem where he will be talking with a

group of young israelis. we're talking about this wellness review for cvs. if you don't do it, we're going to charge you an extra 600 bucks a year. a lot of people are complaining about that. what do you say? 58 866-55-press. here is a story that caught my at attention out of reno. at least eight residents in reno recently found themselves victims of identity theft. one victim said that somebody else using his name racked up $20,000 in credit card bills. oh. you hear that and you know,

better do something -- or i would hope you would think better do something about it i would suggest lifelock ultimate. it's what i have got. but of course lifelock can't protect you or your bank account if you are not a member. call now and you'll get 60 free days of ultimate protection. if you are not happy call within 60 days and get a full refund. make that call to 1-800-356-5967. you call, you tweet, you facebook us. peter? >> blue ghost says so bill where is your line in if you look at the statistics mare sflid childless, employees who have pets live the longest and are the healthiest. so should we reward those

people? >> bill: you can be married and still be healthy. physically healthy. >> but mentally ill. don says not only did the company i worked for offer lower insurance rates for healthier people, but they also paid 75% of gym memberships. >> caller: oh, that's cool. >> yeah. >> bill: live longer do better work, i would argue. >> yeah. >> bill: if you -- i happen to go to the google headquarters once for a meeting, right? i was blown away. what a fun place to work. first of all, everybody dresses down. no suits and ties. and they have a library. they serve meals, breakfast and lunch. >> full meals all day long. >> caller: they have healthy

snacks. they have a place where you with workout. they have a room where you can play video games. and the office area looks like one big video game. it's a fun work environment, and the people -- and i'm sure they have and provide health -- health wellness whatever program as well. yeah encourage your employees to stay fit. we were talk about the wall street journal neil king is a runner, and the wall street journal will pay his travel expenses, i think within reason -- >> yeah. yeah. >> bill: pay his travel expenses to go to a marathon and entry fee -- >> yeah keep your employees healthy. by the way when are we getting our video game room? >> bill: what do you mean? you are sitting in it. this is one big video game.

diana, calling from nashville, tennessee. good morning. >> caller: good morning, bill. i wanted to tell you first i love your show and i wake up extra early just to watch your show, and i watch it and then i take my nap. so i love your show, and i hope you stay on for many years to come. and thank you for addressing the issues that people don't want to touch. >> bill: i appreciate that. and from your lips to god's ears we intend to be around for a long time. >> caller: i hope so. i work for a company that basically pay you just above minimum wage. the health care cost is so high that you cannot afford to have it. and the thing is now, a lot of people can't afford to have the health insurance so they don't buy it and they have an on-site

clinic, but if you don't have the health insurance, you can't use it. and now they are requiring you to draw blood at their clinic and fill out this health assessment, and if you don't comply, they drop you from their insurance all together. and this company does not want to increase your pay. this is one of the largest religious organizations, and basically, to me they are using god to not pay their employees. and all they do is stress you out from the moment you walk in the door to the moment you leave. people are constantly sick in there. they can't afford to take a day off. the place is not really

sanitary, so they clean the bathroom every other day. >> bill: diana, it sounds like you work in a real hell hole. you don't want to tell us the name of this religious organization, do you? >> united methodist publishing house. >> bill: woe. we'll look into that. and you make a very good point. if employers are going to require this, they have to make sure that people can afford the health insurance there right? and they have to encourage people to participate, not make it impossible for people to participate. you got that peter? united methodist publishing house in nashville, tennessee. they'll be hearing from us a little bit later. thank you, diana. debbie calling from manchester tennessee.

>> caller: good morning, on your comment about the smokers, a lot of large employers, the great coverage, they already have hire premiums for smokers. >> bill: yes, think most insurance policies do. >> caller: and that increase falls to the employees so i don't see how a smoker's -- hot it can affect everyone else's premiums, and another thing as far as cvs -- i love cvs, by the way, great company, love them. >> bill: they are. they do great work. >> caller: they really do but the $600 fine i mean that's pretty steep and they could invest that in encouraging hell i haver habits maybe. >> bill: one of the ways they are doing it is and i think you have to start with a checkup.

>> caller: but is that going to affect the employee if they come back with a -- >> bill: from my read yes the information goes to the insurance agency it doesn't affect the employment but it does affect what the employee has to pay as you mentioned $600, which is a lot of money. it seems to me debbie if you have a weight problem, then it's like any other health problem, you accept it, admit it, and then you start working on it, but if you are going to deny it -- what they are trying to do is i think not punish people but encourage people to save money by getting healthy, right? and i guess a lot of us -- look let's face it. we do the right thing -- in a lot of cases we do the right thing because it would cost us money otherwise.

right? let me tell you. for example, i know this is a totally unrelated topic, but i'm careful when i'm driving not to exceed the speed limit because i don't want to have to pay a freaking fine. is that the right motivation? no. maybe i should be thinking i'm driving carefully, because i want to save lives and be a good citizen. that's not why i do it. ike from charleston south carolina. how about that big primary down there? >> caller: oh, yeah they were sending out church buses -- >> bill: for sanford? >> caller: the love governor. yeah. >> bill: what hypocrites. >> caller: i joke, of course but, hey, what can i tell you.

you know, this is a sad day, bill. i having a agreed with you on a lot of things my friend. >> bill: it had to happen, ike. sooner or later. go ahead. >> caller: are you kidding me you want to give businesses another tool to be able to discriminate between people. what is the difference between this type of action. in my opinion the employer has no business getting in and violating my fourth amendment rights. if they want to have any control, this is the control. i show up to their job, and then i go home. okay? and they are entitled to pay me. now if -- if -- if i'm going to work for them, and they are crying about the cost of the medical thing to them et cetera, then here is the problem. by god you pay me enough to buy my own, then it's none of your business. beyond that, think about this, what is the difference -- we have got this problem all over

to the point of -- what's one of the big things that people have been tagged as being gay in they have been discriminated against for years, because they live a quote, unquote high-risk lifestyle. it's another tool for discrimination, whether it's convicted of a felony whether it's you smoke, whether it's you drink, what is next -- enough of this dude. the employer is a fascist corporation is no different from a fascist government. you are either going to go for freedom or down the tubes. >> bill: all right. ike, i'm down to charleston -- i have been looking to get down there -- carol and i -- if we can find a hotel easter week we'll be down there, so i want to go down there, and we'll continue this conversation over a beer or maybe something a little stronger. >> it's bourbon down there.

>> bill: okay. because i think when it comes to making sure everybody is healthy, i don't think that's discrimination. but you make some good points. good to hear from you ike, as always. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned "great leadership" so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter). >> watch the show. >> only on current tv.

current tv is the place for true stories. with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines. real, gripping, current. documentaries... on current tv. ♪ >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey,el eleven minutes before the top of the hour. it is the "full court press."

there was a hearing on the issue of drones, particularly looking at the growing but just beginning use of domestic drones. meanwhile in an story exclusively reported by the"the daily beast", it appears the obama administration has made a decision that they are going to shift the authority for the use of drones overseas from the cia to the pentagon. that was reported by the "daily beast." richard good to have you with us. >> how are you? >> bill: why this shift? >> when we talk about the drone program we talk about it generally as one single entity but for years the u.s. government has been running two parallel drone programs one by the cia and one by the pentagon and the programs operate in

somewhat different ways. the pentagon's program is a little bit more transparent, so when the pentagon decides to put somebody on their targeting list, there is a little bit more of a process across the government bureaucracy. the president himself has a little bit more direct input into the pentagon's process, and the cia's process is very internal to the cia. it's a little bit more closed and there are fewer of those kind of checks and balances that you have with the pentagon. so the thinking here is that this is a way at least within the government to increase the checks and balances and increase the degree of at least internal transparency around the drone process. >> bill: and there seems to be even around the pentagon there are more -- i guess -- there are stricter standards and guidelines about when and where

drones can be used? >> i think that's right. >> bill: of course we don't know a lot about the program at either program, right? >> that's right. and it's not like the military's program is transparent or non-secretive. i think the biggest difference when the military decides to put someone on this list there is this process across the government that goes on that does not take place when the cia does the same thing. >> bill: we have been told by jay carney that the questions raised by rand paul and others about drones and ron widen, are legitimate questions and the white house is pretty soon going to release its guidelines or policy on drones. is this move part of that do you believe? >> yeah, i think it is. john brennan is now the cia director, has over the past year

or two been leading an internal process inside the administration to try to set rules and guidelines and really a process for the drone program going forward, and it's known internally as -- it's called the play book, the idea that they are devising a set, basically of rules, and it will bring more logic to the drone program. >> bill: yeah. >> and this is coming out of that process. >> bill: well, it's interesting that -- that john brennan, the architect of our drone program, once he gets to the cia, the first thing he says is i want to get rid of this hot potato right? >> yeah. >> bill: on domestic drones who is in charge of overseeing the exploding use of domestic drones by government agencies and universities across the board?

>> i don't know the answer to that. i was just the editor of the piece, but it is a good question. >> bill: it certainly is. but i think the answer is nobody knows. there are so many different agencies that are involved in this -- and that was the gist of the hearing yesterday when i talked to one of the staffers on the judiciary committee right after the hearing, that these drones are up and flying and being used and there are no controls and no guidelines so that's the next thing we'll get into, too. richard just we love "the daily beast" and love your good work. thanks for joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> bill: when we come back probably more comments on cvs. >> announcer: this the "bill press show."

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>> announcer: take your emails on any topic at anytime, this is the "bill press show," live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: congress woman judy chu coming up in the next hour as well as the reporter for "politico," kevin robalard. we talked about the my listen um generation, and bill says you are doing a good job defending our den -- generation.

and harry reid voted against think assault weapons ban back in the '90s.

[♪ theme music ♪] >> bill: hey good morning, friends and neighbors, it is thursday march 21st, welcome to the "full court press" here on current tv this thursday morning. the show where we bring you up to date on all of the news of the day here in our nation's capitol, around the country around the globe, and give you a chance to sound off on what it

all means to you. 866-55-press is our toll-free number. that's one way of joinings. you can also join us on twitter @bpshow, and on facebook at facebook/billpressshow. join the conversation and the townhall. president obama on the second day of his visit to the middle east. he toured a technology plant today in israel also toured an exhibit of the amazing dead sea scrolls, then he went off for a visit to the palestinian authority, meeting with the president and back to jerusalem where he will speak with a group of young israelis. back here in the united states in washington, d.c., senator feinstein furious about harry reid's decision not to allow a vote on the assault weapon's ban.

she has accused harry reid of breaking his word and she has vowed that she is not just going to roll over and play dead and let him get away this. and a big fight between the national chair and the former chair of the republican party. >> jack, how old are you? >> nine. >> this is what 27 tons of marijuana looks like. (vo) with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines, way inside. (vo) from the underworld, to the world of privilege. >> everyone in michael jackson's life was out to use him. (vo) no one brings you more documentaries that are real, gripping, current. um, hello. these ugly stains are ruining my good looks and style. and good luck using that cleaner. he's right. those are tough hard water stains, and that cleaner's not gonna cut it. truth is, 85% of us have hard water

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you know who is coming on to me now? you know the kind of guys that do reverse mortgage commercials? those types are coming on to me all the time now. (vo) she gets the comedians laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in the ten commandments, that's

what you're saying. you would rather deal with ahmadinejad than me. >>absolutely. >> and so would mitt romney. (vo) she's joy behar. >>and the best part is that current will let me say anything. what the hell were they thinking? ♪ >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation, on your radio, and on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: senator dianne feinstein says harry reid broke his word and she's not going to roll over and play dead. what do you say? good morning, everybody, welcome, welcome welcome to the "full court press" here on current tv this thursday morning, march 21st. great to see you today.

hope you are doing well. we're in good shape here kicking ass, ready to go. bringing you the news of the day from our nation's capitol there around the country and around the globe. we'll not only tell you what is going on we'll give you a chance to tell us at 866-55-press. that's our toll free number. join the conversation any time. follow us on twitter and talk to out on twitter @bpshow, and on facebook at facebook/billpressshow. good to see you today lots going on here and we have some good friends to help us get into the us in of the day starting with our team here, peter ogburn dan henning, dan on the phone, and siprion bolling our video star. no microphone we just wave to

siprion every morning. how about miami? i'm not a sports fan, but lebron james. he was up against his previous team that he screwed, stabbed in the back, and miami was way, way, way down but pulled it off. >> miles, shot off the rim, rebound, and that's the ball game miami comes from a 27-point deficit to beat the cleveland cavaliers 98-95. they have now won 24 games in a row. >> bill: can you imagine being down 27. >> i mean that's -- in the third quarter being down that much is

daunting. but it shows just how dominant lebron james is, when he is ready to turn it on, he turns it on, and there is no stopping him. which is different than he used to be. now he is a monster. >> bill: you have got it. we have a great lineup for you for the rest of the program, congress woman judy chu from southern california will be joining us as well as a friend of bill from the "huffington post" and joe, our own foreign policy guru who will bring us up to date on what the president is up to in the middle east and his syria in fact use chemical weapons as has been reported. and the republican party engaged in a sort of a civil war. we'll get into that, but first -- >> announcer: this is the "full

court press." >> espn releasing president obama's complete march madness yesterday as the men's tournament gets underway today. number one louisville, indiana, ohio state, and then florida. and he believes that indiana will beat louisville on n the title game. on the women's side baylor connecticut, and california. his final pick for that will be revealed tomorrow. >> bill: i didn't do the women's bracket. >> i don't the women's bracket. i'm sorry. >> bill: we'll let you know our picks later this hour. >> michelle obama was at the [ inaudible ] to celebrate easter and brought bo with her.

she handed out bo-shaped cookies, and handed out tickets to the easter egg roll at the white house. >> bill: that fisher house is a great, great program. really, really do good stuff. >> yeah. >> and how about genetically modified seafood for dinner tonight. the usda is close to approving -- >> bill: i don't want any chemical fish. >> they will begin farming genetically engineered salmon which can grow to market size in half of the time as regular salmon. several retailers have said they will not sell this seafood. >> bill: it's like styrofoam

fish right? >> fish should taste like fish and farmed fish rarely ever taste like fish. >> bill: exactly, and if there's a problem that the stock is getting down, then stop fishing for a while. they have done that. let the stock replenish itself, don't kill or cash so many. i don't get it. i -- i really don't like this whole genetically modified food trend. >> i'm with you. science should be more of the business of should we instead of could we? yeah, they can modify salmon but should they do it? >> bill: i think fish are fine just the way they are. we don't have to reinvent them. >> yeah, right. >> bill: somebody has to defend the fish. we'll do it here. while we're debating over fish, republicans are debating among

themselves about what happened in november, how do they fix it can they fix it who is going to fix it, and it's -- i just admit standing on the sidelines kind of fun to watch. kevin robolard has been watching and reporting on this issue, and joining us this morning on the news line. kevin how are you doing? >> good thank you. >> bill: the competition now this early on in the republican party -- and i don't -- i'm not talking about 2016, although that's out there. but just in terms of who is going to show the way for the republican party the way back the competition seems to be between rand paul and marco rubio, right? >> yeah with paul ryan sort of thrown in there as well.

>> bill: and rand paul and marco rubio are saying different things about where the party is today and where it has got to go, right? >> yes, rubio has stood on the side of mccain, lindsey graham, that you might tie back to the bush era whereas rand paul is very much his father's son and has the non-interventionist, but pull everything back and worry about our own business mentality. >> bill: and also at cpac last weekend rand paul saying that the party looked moss covered, right? pardon me. and he followed marco rubio to the podium who flat out stated we don't need any new ideas. we don't need any new ideas, we

just have to package them better. >> yeah, that's the big debate whether or not they need to change their position or just market themselves better and not have mitt romney out there making comments about the 47%. and it gets back to the idea that people say the republican party rests on those three legs of economic conservatism social conservatism and a strong foreign policy. rand paul says a lot of these things should be left up to the states in terms of stuff like gay marriage and abortion and to the foreign policy conservatism because he has that isolationist streak running through them. but you can see rubio and rand paul also working together in some way particularly on immigration. >> bill: uh-huh. and rand paul stepping up to the plate on immigration this week. they hired some consultants to

do a little analysis of what went wrong in 2012. they released it this week, 98-page report. what does it tell us? >> it is very much the idea of how republican elites would like the party to move forward. it is something that really -- it upsets different parts of the grassroots because some of the proposals -- for example, it said they should rely more on primaries and caucuses, and shorten the primary season and have left debates. think they that will enable gop central to anoint someone and allow them to go through, and it calls in there for comprehensive immigration reform reince priebus backed off a little bit on that, but it's pretty clear that that is most of the republican elite's favorite -- you are looking at

people like haley barber who said he has no problem with the pathway to citizenship whereas that's probably going to be a tough sell in a lot of these gop house districts. >> bill: i have read a little bit of the report and it is pretty blunt. they heard from focus groups around the country that people were saying the republican party comes across as scary, right? it looks like it's a party of stuffy old white men. this is what they were hearing from focus groups around the country, and they put it in there, and said hey, we have got a problem, right? >> yeah, and one thing you cannot accuse them on is putting on rose-colored glasses about any of this. it was very, very harsh, but then turning this into any kind

of action is a different thing. but that was people who used to be republicans. these were all people who had left the republican party. >> bill: yeah. >> which makes it even worse. >> bill: yeah, i know. a very important point. so once this report comes out it is turned into a little pissing contest when these previous chair and the current chair. reince priebus doesn't seem to realize, in my opinion that he is getting the losing end of this argument that he doesn't just shut up. he was accusing michael steele of not having a 50-state strategy, and he was going to do something totally new for the republican party. michael steele goes on msnbc yesterday here he is. >> i was laughing at some of

these numb nuts saying we need to do a 50-state strategy. i'm like dude where were you? that's what he did. >> bill: he is calling the current chair numb nuts so it's letting pretty low down here right? >> yeah, prebus was steele's ally for most of the time steele was the chair of the rnc. and then in the last few months he sort of broke with him and became a really harsh critic. some of it is personal probably, but it has gotten pretty nasty and it's one of those things where it's somewhat strange because although there are more [ inaudible ] under steele's tenure if you talk to a lot of republicans, they are going to say almost universally

reince as chairman because he doesn't have some of those gaffes, and he left the party with so much debt. although it is also worth noting that prebus was on board when they took on that date. >> bill: yeah. this is a no win, it seems to me. >> yeah. >> bill: i had lunch with a republican friend of mine yesterday who said this is crazy, reince priebus should realize that michael steele has a license to go on msnbc any time he wants, and you never pick a fight with a guy who buys ink by the barrel. so this is today's version of it. finally one quick question about karl rove. he is also on the side of saying we got to do something about these tea party whackos who get these guys elected and then they

can't win in november. >> yeah, it was amazing how many shots got taken at karl rove at cpac. sarah palin, and [ inaudible ] from the conservative media watchdog group -- i'm blanking on the name, i'm sorry -- >> bill: the media research -- >> media research center. thank you. it's pretty amazing how quickly he was able to isle leen at it a lot of those tea party folks. a lot of them probably didn't like him in the first place, but it's amazing -- and he did sort of back down from some of his stuff originally where he was -- that conservative victory project that founded -- after that first round of comments he was helping and hawing on how much they would be getting involved in these primaries and whether or not they would be going after people like steve

keg who looks like he is going to win any primary in iowa. >> bill: all right. kevin robolard is a reporter for "politico." nothing more fun than standing on the side lines and watching republicans eat each other alive. thanks a lot kevin. >> all right. thanks a lot. >> announcer:ing heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." converstion started next. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

john fugelsang: if you believe in states rights but still support the drug war you must be high. cenk uygur: i think the number one thing viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. i think the audience gets that i actually mean it. michael shure: this show is about being up to date so a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. joy behar: you can say anything here. jerry springer: i spent a couple joy behar: your mistake was writing a check jerry springer: she never cashed it (vo) the day's events. four very unique points of view. tonight starting at 6 eastern. ♪ >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: twenty-six minutes

after the hour. here we go it is the "full court press" here on thursday march 21st. we reported yesterday and talked a lot about harry reid making the unilateral decision in the senate that he was so sure that the assault weapons ban would fail that he would not even bring it up for a vote in the united states senate. he told senator feinstein that in a meeting in her office she is the author of the bill. and she stormed out of the office not happy about it stormed right to cnn, and said harry broke his word. >> what senator reid told me is that i would have an opportunity for a vote. i take him at his word. >> bill: i take him at his word. and she continued on cnn, he broke it. >> i took away from that meeting

the believe that we would have a vote on the full bill and a vote on ammunition-feeding devices of more than ten bullets. this is very important to me and i'm not going to lay -- lay down and play dead. >> bill: yeah, you know she is not either man. she is going to fight on and she will definitely bring that back and should as an amendment on the floor, and i'll say it again, don't count dianne feinstein out. she is a fighter and a scrapper and she knows that senate as well as anybody. if anybody can get the votes for that, she can. meanwhile, by the way, governor of colorado signing a tough gun safety bill yesterday. so we are seeing action and leadership at the state level. governor cuomo, governor o'malley, and now john hickenlooper in colorado.

when we come back what is happening with the ryan budget, congress woman judy chu will tell us. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪ going to do the young turks. i think the number one thing that viewers like about the honest. they know that i'm not bs'ing them with some hidden agenda, actually supporting one party or the other. when the democrats are wrong, they know that i'm going to be the first one to call them out. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us.

♪ >> announcer: this is the "full court press," the "bill press show," live on your radio, and on current tv. >> bill: make it thirty-three minutes after the hour here now on thursday march 21st. good morning, everybody, welcome back to the "full court press" here on current tv and on your local progressive talk radio station, coming to you live coast-to-coast from our studio

on capitol hill in washington, d.c., and here in the capitol yesterday the lights were still on on the capitol dome when i went to bed last night. the house grappling with the issue of the ryan budget and a substitute budget on the republican side even worse than the ryan budget. where are we going to come out on all of this? and what about immigration reform. two big issues we want to turn to a member of congress from california, congress woman judy chu. good to have you with us. >> great to be here. >> bill: thank you. good morning, so where are we now with the ryan budget in the house? is there going to be a vote on it this week and what do you expect? >> there will be a vote on it today. we had votes on various amendments yesterday. all of the amendments failed. that is the alternative budget.

>> bill: and the alternative budget yesterday put forth by the republican study committee, i understand was even more draconian -- had more draconian cuts than the ryan budget. >> it did. it reduced the debt within four years rather than ten years. and even ten years is very very difficult, but interestingly they didn't even have the republican votes to pass it. >> bill: so what can democrats do in this case? is there a chance of getting a more reasonable democratic budget that would reflect what the president wants passed out of the house? >> there will be a senate budget that will be voted on today and will be sent over. it still maintains the sequester, but makes some reasonable changes it to so

there can be more flexibility. >> bill: right. >> and i suspect it will be voted on and passed today. >> bill: in the senate right? >> it will actually be sent over here to the house, and i suspect it will pass. >> bill: pass the house? >> it will pass the house. because -- it's basically a maintenance kind of budget and just simply extends what we have right now. >> bill: does this mean congress woman that the -- this -- the end of the month deadline right, where we were afraid that the cr is up and this would be the next fiscal cliff, that if this senate version of the budget comes over and is passed by the house, that we have escaped the fiscal cliff once again? >> yes, we have escaped it for the short return. >> bill: yeah, how long?

>> it would be only for a few months, so we still face the debt ceiling issue very shortly. >> bill: that comes up next and i think this extension goes until september if i recall seeing -- >> that's right. the end of the fiscal year uh-huh. >> bill: right. congress woman judy chew who represents the seat formerly hell by our good friend hilda solis. who often has come in studio with us. we look forward to seeing you come in the studio with us some day as well. on the issue of immigration reform, even rand paul came out and didn't go as far as the president, but he did say -- put

himself in the camp of those who think it's time for immigration reform, dealing with that issue with those of us from southern california have been dealing with for a long time. are you optimistic about chances? >> i am optimistic in this time of people thinking of us being at a partisan strangle hold there is cooperation here. i was very encouraged about the work put out, i do believe that the immigration reform bill will move award. >> bill: if it moves ahead and republicans support it and they always shot it down in the past of course, it will do so because they feel they need it right? they need some outreach to latinos. >> yes 73% of asian americans,

and 71% of hispanic americans voted for president obama. i think the republicans realize that unless they do something about this they will -- they will bleed even more votes from these communities. >> bill: you know, it's interesting to me -- we talk a lot about the latino vote. there's not a lot of talk about the asian american vote. why is it that 73% of asian americans would vote for president obama. >> i do believe immigration reform was large part of it. i also believe that they followed president obama's policies of economic stimulus an balanced approach, and -- of making sure that we have -- had more for hire education. >> bill: interesting, yeah so it's the policies really that they saw for president obama that they supported. and on the immigration reform

do you believe that a guest worker program will be or should be part of it? i mean we talk about the path to citizenship, and i think there are some differences on that, but most people agree there has to be some path to citizenship even if it's difficult, but the guest worker program is a core controversial part of it. >> it is a difficult part. we definitely have to having a cultural workers here in order to support our economy, but to have some kind of permanent guest worker program in place, that is controversial, and a point of contention. >> bill: yeah, and a lot of people -- democrats and republicans on both sides of that. two important issues, the ryan budget, sounds like we're going

to see some action on that today, and on immigration reform. congress woman judy chu thanks for your time this morning. >> thank you. >> bill: all right. of course as important as those issues are they pail in importance to the march madness. >> that's right. >> bill: when does it begin? >> today. >> bill: oh my god then we bet get our brackets in. >> i have got it right here. >> bill: all right. we'll have expert guidance for you next. >> announcer: chatting with you live this is the "bill press show," live on your radio and on current tv.

criticizing, and holding policy to the fire. are you encouraged by what you heard the president say the other night? is this personal or is it political? a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. staying in tough with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for the middle class. but we do care about them, right? vo: the war room tonight at 6 eastern

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♪ >> announcer: on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey, here we go it's fifteen minutes before the top of the hour on the "full court press." president obama is now speaking to a group of young israelis in jerusalem, just coming back -- no sorry, he is now at the news conference with the president still in the palestinian authority. we'll be speaking to that group a little bit later today. yesterday he and president

netanyahu held a press conference together. they take questions from reporters from the american side and the israeli side. one of the reporters that the president called on was chuck todd. he is a good guy but he asks some of the dumbest questions. he'll throw several questions together before he gets to a point. well, he did that yesterday after asking four questions in a row. president obama finally says what is going on? >> and then the question -- another question -- >> chuck how many you got? you say you got one question and then -- you see how the young lady from channel 1. she had one question. she was very well behaved, chuck. >> bill: hey, chuck how many you got? and then chuck throws a question

to prime minister netanyahu and he jumps on chuck todd a little bit. >> i thought i had four questions -- [ laughter ] [ applause ] >> look, this is not a kosher question, but don't hog it. [ laughter ] >> bill: don't hog it. netanyahu, he lived in the united states for so long he knows the call lobing wallisms. i can't tell you how many times those of us in the back rows of the briefing room have said under our breaths to chuck todd, don't hog it -- not just to chuck by the way. there are some others in the front row who shall go unnamed. peter -- >> all right.

very exciting time bill. >> bill: i can't tell you the hours i put into my bracket. >> yeah, i saw you spending a couple of hours this morning while you were finishing it. should we take the lead from our leader. >> let's do it. >> bill: president obama came up with the final four, indiana florida, louisville, and ohio right? >> yeah. >> bill: and here he is with his top >> obama: for the championship i'm going back to the big ten. i think this is indiana's year. >> i will go for the final four for each of us here. i'll start with the defending champion, mr. press. you went with the same four that the participate did. >> bill: i did know what he had -- >> you picked a different winner

than he did. you picked louisville. >> why was that bill? >> bill: because i love saying louisville. >> i think that's actually -- >> bill: i kid you not i love louisville. >> it's the silent s. >> bill: i have never been there, i have just always had a soft spot in my heart for louisville. >> okay. so you have louisville taking it all. i have louisville georgetown miami -- >> bill: i can see georgetown again, only because i like the campus. >> yes. >> bill: they have very pretty buildings. >> the trees are exactly the right height. >> i have georgetown in the final four miami in the final

four, louisville, and wisconsin, which is my sleeper. >> bill: okay. who is your winner? >> i have got louisville. louisville is sort of the favorite in this tournament. >> bill: did i know that? . >> i'm sure you did. >> bill: yeah, right. >> dan has louisville ohio state, georgetown and syracuse. >> going for the big east. >> bill: that's because he went to school in ithaca. they are close to syracuse relatively. >> an hour but don't call us syracuse fans by any stretch. >> so dan also had louisville winning. we'll get to mr. boldings bracket.

louisville georgetown miami and ole miss. >> what? >> bill: where did that come from? >> they came on strong there at the end. he has got them in the final four, although he has them falling to louisville but that being said he says that georgetown is going to be the national champion this year. >> i love it. >> bill: so gorge continue to -- >> georgetown louisville. >> bill: that should be a shocker, huh? >> it would be a shocker. i can't see that happening, but you never know. that's the beautiful thing about this tournament, you never know. i would say his ole miss pick is -- it's a long shot but that's the bracket with gonzaga

is number one -- >> bill: i like gonzaga too. >> why? >> bill: well, over ole miss. >> you like the z in gonzaga. >> you know duke is a good basketball team? >> bill: i do. i also have a friend who went to duke. she works for google now, but went to duke. >> do you know kansas is a good team? >> bill: here is my thinking about that if it's in the midwest, it's a good team. >> okay. midwest equals good basketball. >> bill: yeah. >> all right. >> bill: hoosiers good basketball. >> okay. now we have phil -- >> bill: this is the min

-- milenial pick. >> he has new mexico and went with the president on this one, indiana. indiana being the national champions. as phil said he stands with his president. >> bill: the real question is how much money do we have on this? >> it's all about pride, man. >> bill: no it's not. bs. >> we'll talk about money off of the air. i'll tell you what i bet ya $10,000. >> bill: the press pool. now you know where we're coming from. who do you submit your brackets too? >> there are all different kinds of pools. >> bill: tweet it to us. we'll get you in the pool.

>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv. this is the "bill press show."

(vo) current tv gets the converstion started next. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

♪ ♪ >> announcer: is the "bill press show." >> bill: man, i got tell you, i'm not, obviously, part of the press pack following president obama around in the middle east and in israel, particularly, but i wouldn't want to be man. his schedule impossible. so far today, the president has already been to the israel museum where he visited the dead sea scrolls and a technology

expo situation, then went on marine one to the palestinian authority, where he was greeted by the president, had a big photo session with them, went into a restricted bilateral meeting with president abbas, after that an expanded working lunch, held giant news conference following that lunch. i think it's right now -- the president is the attending a youth dance performance on -- in the palestinian authority, then he holds a round table right after that with palestinian youth. then back to jerusalem, where he gives an address to the israel people at 5:00 jerusalem time. after which he meets with the u.s. embassy in tel aviv and

u.s. console at it staff. and tonight he has a working dinner with president perez. i mean give the guy is break.

[♪ theme music ♪] >> bill: hey good morning, friends and neighbors it is thursday march 21st. good to see you today, and welcome. welcome to the "full court press" here on current tv your morning round upof all of the news of the day here in our nation's capitol, around the

country and around the globe. we'll tell you what is going on and unlike any other morning show, we'll give you a chance to tell us what you think. by phone at 866-55-press, join us online on twitter @bpshow, and on facebook at facebook/billpressshow. president obama in the second day of his trip to israel. he has already this morning met -- going to the israeli museum and visited an exhibit of the dead sea scrolls, and then a technology exhibit there at the israel museum after which he flew off to the palestinian authority, had a working lunch and then a working news conference, and he is now attending a youth dance recital, and then a sitdown meeting with young palestinian leaders, after which he goes back to give an address to the israeli people.

back here dianne feinstein hopping mad that harry reid will not allow a vote on her assault weapons ban, she said that harry reid said she would get a vote and she refuses to play dead on that issue. >> do you think that there is any chance we'll see this president even say the words "carbon tax"? >> with an open mind... >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned "great leadership" so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter). >> watch the show. >> only on current tv. [ male announcer ] it's red lobster's lobsterfest our largest selection of lobster entrees like lobster lover's dream or new grilled lobster and lobster tacos. come in now and sea food differently. visit redlobster.com now for an exclusive $10 coupon on two lobsterfest entrees.

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you know who is coming on to me now? you know the kind of guys that do reverse mortgage commercials? those types are coming on to me all the time now. (vo) she gets the comedians laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in

the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. you would rather deal with ahmadinejad than me. >>absolutely. >> and so would mitt romney. (vo) she's joy behar. >>and the best part is that current will let me say anything. what the hell were they thinking? ♪ >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation, on your radio, and on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: senator dianne feinstein says harry reid broke his word. he promised her a vote and she's not going to get one. she's not happy. good morning, everybody, what do you say? what do you say? great to see you this morning on the "full court press."

welcome to the program. coming to you live on your local progressive talk radio station and on current tv all across this great land of ours. we look forward to hearing from you, and getting your take on the issues of the day. we'll give you a chance to tell us what it all means to you by phone at 866-55-press. that's how you join us. 866-557-7377. or you can also join us on -- and love to hear from you on twitter your comments on our twitter at @bpshow, facebook.com, on facebook it's facebook/billpressshow. befriend us on facebook and we'll be your friend forever. lots to talk about today. and we need the help of the entire team. they are all here.

good morning, guys. >> good morning. >> hey, hey, hey. >> bill: and we all filled out our brackets want you to know if you weren't with us last hour. the president has indiana winning it all. three out of five of us have louisville winning it all. phil has indiana. and siprion is just off the wall with -- >> georgetown. he's going local. >> bill: yeah he didn't pick the ravens. [ laughter ] >> i'm surprised phil didn't try to pick the ravens. >> bill: that's right. there's a front page story in the "new york times" this morning that nbc has made a big decision, a double whammy for the tonight show they have told

jimmy fallon that he will be the next host of the tonight show when jay leno's contract runs out. didn't we see this one before with -- yeah conan. anyhow they told jimmy fallon you are the next host. it is your show. we're going to dump jay leno and move the show back to new york. that's where it started, and johnny carson was the one who moved it to l.a. because he wanted to have a nicer lifestyle. i know his house in malibu, and he wanted to have a -- be closer to hollywood celebrities, but they want to move it back to new york and they are building a new studio for him. so jay leno is wasting no opportunity to jab back at the nba executives.

here he is last night. >> this is kind of scary, scientists say they are getting closer to closer to cloning of extinct species. things once thought to be extinct can now be brought back from the dead. so there's hope for nbc. it could turn around. [ laughter ] >> good for him. they are stabbing him in the back -- >> bill: they counted him out as dead before. >> this will be the second time to push him out, and he has now for 21 years basically been number 1 the entire time. >> bill: he has been number 1 in the overall ratings, and number 1 in the younger demographic that think hope to attract with jimmy fallon. >> i'm not a leno fan, but

america has spoken. we love mcdonald's, and we love jay leno. >> bill: i love him because he used to listen to my radio show. >> that's a good reason. i just don't understand the business idea of saying we're going to push you out when you are number 1. when they already tried it and it blew up in their face. >> bill: conan o'brien lasted seven months. >> it seemed longer than that. >> bill: joe from the plow shares fund will join us next hour. but first -- >> announcer: this is the "full court press." >> the nfl announced a couple of big rule changes that will be implemented in the next football

season players carrying the ball will no longer be able to drop their heads, and their tuck rule is being eliminated so when a quarterback loses the ball when he opts not to throw it it will automatically be ruled a fumble. before it was not. >> bill: that seems a little complicated to me, am i going to remember -- get on the iphone -- >> basically you just can't head butt someone. >> bill: national burrito chain chipotle is pulling its support of the boy scouts come this may.

"think progress" reports that they caved to mounting pressure to people telling them to drop it, and they announced they do not share the same values that the boy scouts do and believe everyone should be treated equally. >> bill: they are a good chain. good fresh mexican food. >> how about some genetically modified seafood for dinner. the usda is close to approving a massachusetts country that is genetically altering salmon to make it grow twice as fast as a normal salmon does. there are several retailers around the country who are already against this. whole foods and trader joes are among them saying they will not sell the modified fish in their

stores. >> bill: i'll never eat it. and i would just hope the usda would say it has to be clearly labeled. >> oh, yeah. >> bill: i think they ought to have a fish market and then the phony fish market. >> just think you could get a great new glow to your skin, you never know what exactly is in it. >> bill: yeah, that's what i'm amaze of. fourteen minutes half the top of the hour. the house is wrestling with what they are going to do about the ryan budget, big vote today, and in the senate big spat going on between harry reid and senator dianne feinstein over whether or not there will ever be a vote on the assault weapon's ban. jen bend eerie follows politics

for huff and joins us on our news line. hi, jen. >> hi, bill. >> bill: good to have you with us as always. >> thank you. >> bill: this is a big trip for the president. there has always been this talk about president obama and benjamin net yaw hue don't really like each other. is this a fence mender? >> yes. they were laughing about how attractive both of their wives are, and more attractive than they are so their children are more attractive than they are. it is all subtle -- it's all what we call diplomacy, where

they have these moments of laughing together at little things, but when you put it all together it looks like the mood was a lot more comfortable than the first time they were together. >> bill: yeah, and the president said to the president at the airport was -- god it's so good to get away from that congress. >> i know. [ laughter ] >> bill: and i'm sure for him, it is. back to chuck todd for a second, will you admit like i have that for those of us in the back row of the briefing room it was good to see chuck todd put in his place. because he does ask question after question after question, right? sometimes? >> well, it's true. when you are in the front row of the white house briefings you often get more chances to ask questions. but if i were chuck todd at a press conference in israel and i was one of three of four

reporters that got to ask questions, i would probably try to pile on too, if i could. >> bill: as long as you had the microphone. >> exactly. >> bill: harry reid announcing that you know what she doesn't have the votes, so i'm not even going to -- to let senator feinstein's bill come up for a vote on the senate floor other than an amendment. senator feinstein not too happy with that jen, to say the least, right? >> she has been moving pretty hard to put forward this bill that everybody knows doesn't have the votes to pass. so you can campaign for it and push a vote, which even if it is an amendment, it's still getting a vote but it's no surprise it is not going to pass. i'm not sure why that blew up so

much yesterday. because the gun package has four components, the background checks, school safety provision, background tracking, and the assault weapons ban. it is going to get a vote. i think that's important because people will go down on record on it. you'll see who has been quietly or not so quietly pushing against it behind the scenes. >> bill: here is why senator feinstein is so upset she was on cnn yesterday, and she basically tells us she thought she had a deal. here she is. >> senator reid told me i would have an opportunity for a vote. i take him at his word. >> bill: she said i took him at his word, and he broke his word. >> i didn't see those comments

from her, but i guess i would say it is getting a vote. >> bill: yes, as an amendment, of course republicans can filibuster an amendment too, i guess. >> it can. but all of these things are getting a vote. there has got to be some tactic call way to get a vote. >> bill: we're talking to jen bendery at "huffington post." jen this week the republican national committee, they issued their report -- reporters were calling it the autopsy of what went wrong in november 2012 and how the party can come back and -- and they talked about outreach, right? particularly the younger voters. and on one key issue, then,

yesterday, reince priebus, the republican chair goes on -- i forget what show he was on and says, oh no we are still the party of marriage only for a man and a woman. whereas 81% of young voters today say they are totally for mar age equality. i guess my question is, is the republican party going to change or not, right? >> i'm not sure how much reince priebus is speaking for what congress is prepared to do to try to look more big -- big -- big tent party-type people here. i don't think you're going to find many republicans in congress who have you ask them point blank will tell you they support gay marriage. at the same time i guess reince priebus could just give a mirky

answer. they are sort of lost on this issue. so i'm not sure what they need to do here, except -- >> bill: yeah, it seems to me the tide is turning. >> and the only reason rod portman decided to support gay marriage is because his son is gay, and he has known this for at least two years, which again it is great that he has changed his position on this, for advocates of gay marriage but it's not like he has a noble moment where he realized he was on the wrong side of history. it's his son is gay, and it took him a couple of years to decide maybe my son should be able to get married. >> bill: all right. jen bendery always good to have you with us. >> thanks bill.

>> bill: when we come back more on that big fight between dianne feinstein and harry reid. ♪ >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." converstion started next. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. >> you are. >> the troops love me. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

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life was out to use him. (vo) no one brings you more documentaries that are real, gripping, current. ♪ >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: twenty-six minutes after the hour. here we go. a lot of feuding going on at our nation's capitol these days. big fight between harry reid and senator dianne feinstein. he says there won't be a vote on the assault weapon's ban, she is

accusing him of breaking his word. and on the republican side reince priebus is in a spat with former republican chair michael steele. yesterday michael steele went on the radio show for andrea tontarose who is a contributor to fox news. >> michael steele who would win in a steel cage match, you or reince priebus? >> oh, no question i would clean his clock. >> what would you use the sleeper hold or -- >> just -- just one knock on the head. it's done it's over. >> no pile driver needed? >> no that's just way too much energy for this. >> bill: so then she asked him about reince priebus, saying well, michael steele made a lot of mistakes. he was a terrible chair -- i'm paraphrasing here of course.

he accused him of running the party into too much debt and basically bankrupting the party, and not doing anything about a 50-state strategy, which reince priebus said he invented. >> i was laughing at some of these numb nuts saying oh we need to do a 50-state strategy. dude, where were you in 2010? that's exactly what we did. >> bill: did i hear the word numb nuts? you have to savor the moment standing on the sidelines as a democrat, watching the republicans throw each other under the bus, call each other numb nuts. now i got to tell you, i'm not sure how to save the republican party. i'm not sure if the republican party can indeed be saved, but i know one thing, it is not going

to be saved if republicans keep acting like democrats and forming a circular firing squad. that's just numb nuts. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> if you believe in state's rights but still support the drug war you must be high. >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> do you think that there is any chance we'll see this president even say the words "carbon tax"? >> with an open mind... >> has the time finally come for >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned "great leadership" so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter). >> watch the show. >> only on current tv.

♪ >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." [ laughter ] >> just this once yeah. ♪ hey, joe, i said where are you going with that gun in your hand ♪ >> bill: music and all, he is back. joe from the plow shares fund. isn't that great? just for you this morning. >> thank you, sir.

>> bill: good to see you. we got lots to talk about on the foreign pollty front. joe, i want to start with an anniversary that we marked this week, the tenth anniversary of the invasion of iraq. richard pearl -- >> one of the men that walked us there step by step. >> bill: exactly. he was asked a couple of days ago on npr, all right, now we look back, almost 5,000 dead, cost us $2.2 trillion, looking back ten years later, was the war worth it. here is what his response is. quote, i have got to say i think that is not a reasonable question. what we did at the time was done in the belief that it was necessary to protect this nation. you can't go back a decade later

and say, well we shouldn't have done that. >> i -- i don't understand that. besides chutzpah how else can you explain that. you should never go back and look at history? you should never judge the wisdom of your steps -- >> bill: you should never say we made a mistake. >> yeah, this is what analysts do. but not apologists. >> bill: the arrogance of a statement like that? >> yeah. >> bill: which by the way i think in and of it's a shows that he knows the iraq war was a total blunder. >> yeah, and we was talking about the man who was going to be the new president of iraq he was bringing him to senate office, and council, explaining how easy and just this was going to be. yeah, he paved the way to hell. >> bill: exactly.

let's fast forward to today. president obama on a very important trip to the middle east. what do we expect to come out of it? >> much improved relations. they are calling it the schmooze offensive. president obama has a fairly low popularity against the israely public. but this may pick it up. the press saying he had us at shalom. today he is in the west bank. visiting the palestinians. they are less than taken with his charming personality, and his good words. they are waiting for some actions. >> bill: are we likely to see any restart of the peace process out of this. >> the president says he wants to do this. he says secretary kerry is going

to be devoting a great deal of time to it. he is pressing it. and one of his tactics is to step back on his statements on settlements. four years ago he said stop the settlements and then we'll get to the peace talks. now he is urging the authorities to come to the peace table. >> bill: at the briefings, jay carney has been very quick to tamp down expectations for this trip. don't expect anything to be signed or any big agreement. in and of itself the trip is worth going on for the reasons that you stated, but do not expect any tangible results. >> that's right. no announcements are being announced. no plan to release some of the $700,000 in aid that has been held up. >> bill: why is that being held up?

>> disputes over attacks by hamas on the gaza strip. >> bill: okay. okay. one of the first things the president did at the airport when he arrived yesterday morning was to -- to look at this installation of part of the iron dome defense system that the president did not make time to go out into the countryside to see it so they brought one of them right to the airport so he could look at it. is this star wars missile defense israeli style with our money? >> it is. we paid for most of this system. about $250 million to this system, and it works a little but nowhere near what they are claiming. they claimed almost 90% effectiveness during the war. they claimed it shot down hundreds of these short-range rockets. independent scientists are now

examining it, and they are looking at videos. if you shot down nine out of ten, zero, none. they can find no visual evidence of an interception. in fact they see the opposite, they see the dome going up and then taking sharp turns to chase the rocket it just missed. it sends pellets out in the path of the in-coming missile. if it is off a few degrees those pellets don't do any good. and they are finding a lot more ground damage has occurred. so the claims of this iron dome are now being brought back down to earth, and maybe 9% effective not 90. >> that's amazing. >> bill: it is amazing.

>> you have heard so much about it -- >> you heard it right? and you bought it? >> totally. >> this is just like the patriot missile in '91. we all thought it worked. i was sent up to investigate how they did this. it turns out no the patriot didn't work either. it intercepted four out of 44 not 41 out of 44. same kind of problem. >> bill: is this iron dome designed to protect israel against rockets coming from gaza or lebanon or iran? >> oh, gaza. it's short range. and you have a chance of doing this. >> bill: but the real concern is iran. >> yes, and the president was

very clear on this. they will prevent iran from getting a nuclear weapon. the president i think is putting himself in a box here it might not be possible but he stands firmly with netanyahu on this. >> bill: they both said we understand diplomacy is the way to go if they can. and that's what the president says also. but the president went farther than he had done before in stressing military action. >> right. he is in israel stressing this, and israel's right to defend themselves, of course. hah everybody agrees with that. but he urges there is still time for diplomacy and netanyahu agrees. he now said to actually manufacture a bomb it would take about a year. so now israel and the u.s. are

in line with their times a assessments. year is the minimum time. >> bill: and the other issue that came up in their discussions, of much concern is syria, and the reports that -- from the opposition in syria, that syria -- the sirrian government has used chemical weapons against them. do we know that? what is going on there? >> we do not know that. we have reports. >> bill: is it likely? >> i think it's unlikely but it's possible. we have an attack of a village which has been a site of much conflict for the last couple of years, but the rebels claim it was a chemical attack that was delivered by a scud. the regime says the rebelled used the chemicals. what we do know is scores were injured, they were brought into the hospital they have

respiratory problems. it is certainly not mustard gas. is it a nerve agent? it might be be it also could be a variety of things. it could be a phosphorous attack. that also can cause respiratory failure. so as the president said the evidence isn't in if it is a chemical attack, he said that is a game changer. >> bill: he did say it would be a game changer, meaning -- that's code for what? >> the administration officials testifying on capitol hill wouldn't say what. they kept saying we won't go into a hypothetical. but it's widely interpreted to mean military strikes. you would see finally the u.s. take military action and/or no

fly zones. >> bill: wow. tension building up there in the middle east. on the home front yesterday, the senate judiciary committee holding a very important hearing yesterday on drones. again. but this time not the use of drones in pakistan or afghanistan or somalia, but the use of drones here in the united states. we'll talk about that when we come back on the "full court press," thursday morning. >> announcer: this is the "full court press," the "bill press show." live on your radio and on current tv. ♪ just be grateful current tv does not come in smellivision. the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo) only on current tv.

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(vo) she gets the comedians laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. (vo) she's joy behar. >>current will let me say anything. ♪

>> i'm convinced that the domestic use of drones to collect information would have a brood and significant impact on the lives of every day americans. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: that is senator pat leahy on domestic use of drones. in studio with us from ploughshares.com. >> it is the seventh birthday of twitter today. twitter began seven years ago today. >> that's great. >> bill: that is my first tweet? i will never forget my first

tweet. >> that's amazing. >> you use it all the time. >> i do. i tweeted on the way in. and use it to get the latest news reports. >> twitter was around for a couple of years before people picked up and got it rolling. >> i have been using it for four years, i just got my twitter birthday greeting this week. they send out a note to you, happy birthday. >> bill: i had dinner with joe and his wife last week, and he tweeted the entire time. >> bill just said the funniest thing. wish you were here. >> took pictures of the food. >> yes. [ laughter ] >> bill: on the drone front. on the use of drones on the warfare side whatever we call

the war on terror now, we have had two programs. the cia and pentagon have been going drones. "the daily beast" is reporting that the obama administration has decided to move all drones to the pentagon. >> this was a scoop on "the daily beast", so congratulations. and the basic reason is senior cia officials are concerned about the over militaryization of the cia. they are getting away from spying and surveillance and information, and they have been conducting an increasingly large war. they are the ones doing the drones in yemen and other countries, and they fear it is going to blow up on them -- sorry for the pun -- and

damage the image of the cia so they want out. >> bill: i love it. john brennan saying i don't want this hot potato. >> and the air force is training more drone pilots now than bomber pilots. >> bill: that tells you where -- that the program is not going away. >> correct. >> bill: and is there -- will there be more transparency at the pentagon than at the cia? [ laughter ] >> sorry to -- highly unlikely. >> bill: is that a dumb question? >> no. >> bill: we don't know anything about what the cia is doing. >> we have 16 different military agencies and some of the most secret are the military agencies. so moving it no i don't think

that will make much difference. >> bill: so they had a hearing not so long ago on the use of drones for military purposes. yesterday was all about domestic drones, where some people have said, well, this is perfectly -- there are some really good uses obviously of the drone program. for search and rescue maybe car chases, but senator chuck grassley said something very interesting yesterday. he said just because the government may comply with the constitution, does not mean they should be able to constantly surveil like big brother. >> yeah. this is the clash -- we see it on a number of fronts of technology versus constitutional rights freedom, liberty and privacy, and you see a brood alliance on this issue, and it's

because in part of the increasing use of these drones. we now have hundreds of thousands in the hands of law enforcement for the purposes you say -- and you would like this. the drone doing the high-speed car chase, and searching hundreds of miles of water for an overturned capsized boat yes. but they are getting increasingly smaller and tell thinker. we now have humming bird sized drones that can fly through your bedroom window and perch on your wall and do surveillance. >> bill: divorce lawyers are going to have a field day. >> they have drones that have small explosive charges that can take out you and not the guy next to you. we have bug-sized drones.

you don't need to wiretap your phone anymore. you can fly it in and put it up in your bedroom, in your living room, and surveil your whole house. so people want limits on this stuff now before the technology becomes more widespread. >> bill: i am stunned. i didn't know that technology existed. oh, my god. that big fly that we were chasing around the studio yesterday -- >> we were. >> take another look. >> bill: it could have been a drone. >> we couldn't kill it either. it was the unkillable fly. oh, my god, i'm freaked out right now. >> bill: roger ail sent that bug in here. thanks, joe, thanks for coming in. i'll wrap it up with a parting shot. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

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